Argentine legend Hernan Crespo emerged the star attraction among a host of semi-retired world stars auctioned in Kolkata on Monday to play in a new football tournament in India. Crespo was picked up for an annual salary of $840,000 by the Barasat franchise to play alongside district-level players over seven weeks in the proposed Premier League Soccer (PLS).
Italy’s World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro went for $830,000 to Siliguri, Robert Pires of France fetched $800,000 from Howrah, Nigerian Jay Jay Okocha got $550,000 from Durgapur and Robbie Fowler of England was sold to Kolkata for $530,000.
Former Argentina captain Juan Pablo Sorin, the sixth ‘icon’ player, was not named in the list of auctioned players released by the promoters Celebrity Management Group (CMG). The tournament, the brainchild of football officials in the eastern state of West Bengal, is a franchise-based event on the lines of cricket’s popular Indian Premier League.